This invention relates generally to an apparatus for advancing successive sheets from a stack of sheet material, and more particularly, to a reproducing machine having a sheet storage compartment containing a feeding mechanism for separating and advancing the uppermost sheet from the stack for further processing therein.
Reproducing machines which are designed to produce multiple copies in quick succession require suitable apparatus for insuring that a single sheet of material can be separated from a stack of such sheets and properly fed through the machine. One sheet after another is fed from the top of the stack of sheets and suitably processed within the reproducing machine.
A conventional sheet feeding apparatus is equipped with a tray member that supports the stack of sheets, separator elements mounted at the forward end of the tray member, and a feeding mechanism advancing successive separated sheets from the stack. Typically, the feeding mechanism must be continuously moved once in order to load the stack of sheets, and each time a successive sheet is to be advanced from the tray member, i.e., the feeding mechanism moves into and out of engagement with the successive sheets for advancement thereof. In a feeding mechanism having one or a plurality of rotatable feed rolls for advancing the paper, the relationship of the feed rolls with respect to the paper is extremely critical. Each sheet of paper should, preferably, engage the feed rolls at the same point of tangency. Only then will all of the sheets of paper be advanced from the tray member along substantially the same path, i.e., tangentially from the feed rolls at the point of contact therewith. The distance each successive sheet travels is minimized by the utilization of a common path. In particular, when a common path is utilized, the sheet feeding apparatus may be made more compact than was heretofore attainable with each successive sheet traversing different paths. The commonality of paths for each successive sheet reduces the required operating range of movement for the successive stages in the sheet feeding apparatus. This permits the mechanism associated with the successive stages of sheet feeding to be closely spaced from another and substantially reduced in size. It is, therefore, evident that the utilization of a common path along which successively separated uppermost sheets are advanced permits the size of the sheet feeding apparaus to be minimized. The aforementioned reduction in size of the sheet feeding apparatus is particularly useful in desk size reproducing machines.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to improve the sheet feeding appratus by minimizing the distance of the path of travel for each successively separated uppermost sheet.